The 2016 Annual Report themed -Leaving No One Behind – the clarion call from 2016 New Urban Agendacaptures an array of activities that the Centre for Urban Research and Innovations (CURI) undertook in the year 2016. The Centre started as the...

The University of Nairobi through the Centre for Urban Research and Innovations is representing is forging a collaboration with the UNIVERSIDAD POLITÉCNICA DE MADRID (UPM). The collaboration is in accordance with a mutual desire to promote academic cooperation in science and technology...

The theme of the CURI 2015 Annual Report is Towards a New Agenda, in acknowledgement of the adoption of the new 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development, and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The SDG’s provide much to reflect on, and to the Centre, they have provided...

The Centre for Urban Research and Innovations (CURI) and its partners namely Akiba Mashinani Trust (AMT), Slum Dwellers International (SDI), the Federation for Urban Poor (Muungano wa Wanavijiji) and University of California, Berkeley, have in the last 7 years been focused on research and...

The Centre for Urban Research and Innovations (CURI), held a two-day training of County managers, planners and urban professionals on GIS and Remote Sensing. This training was part of the Centre’s core objective of Capacity Building and Continuous Profession Development (CPD). The...

The Town and County Planning and Development Conference was held from 9th -10th November 2016 at Reef Hotel Mombasa. The conference also marked the World Town Planning Day. The late Professor Carlos Maria della Paolera of the University of Buenos Aires...

The Centre for Urban Research and Innovations in collaboration with the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Nairobi and Makueni County Government have embarked on a learning experience of an Urban Studio in Makueni’s commercial hub of Emali. The...

University of Nairobi, through the Centre for Urban Research and Innovations (CURI) and its partners is hosting a 2-day conference on the theme of Prospects for innovative, Resilient and Inclusive Urban Development. The conference focuses on three main areas 1) Governance and...

It is with great pride that I share with you the annual report 2014 for the Center for Urban Research and Innovations (CURI). It provides us with an opportunity to reflect on achievements and challenges over the past year and identify areas where we can improve in the coming year. This...

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The Centre for Urban Research and Innovations (CURI) was represented at the Mukuru SPA workshop in Mombasa on the 4th-6th of July 2017. The workshop was held after the preparation of the inception report triggered by the declaration of a special planning area in three informal settlements in Mukuru, Nairobi.

The theme of the CURI 2015 Annual Report is Towards a Urban New Agenda, in acknowledgement of the adoption of the new 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development, and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The SDG’s provide much to reflect on, and to the Centre, they have provided an avenue to re-direct our focus towards sustainability, in our bid to be a Centre of excellence in promoting urban research, innovations and effective planning in Africa and beyond.

The Centre for Urban Research and Innovations (CURI) and its partners namely Akiba Mashinani Trust (AMT), Slum Dwellers International (SDI), the Federation for Urban Poor (Muungano wa Wanavijiji) and University of California, Berkeley, have in the last 7 years been focused on research and collaborative action aimed at promoting sustainable urban development.

From our Blog

Service provision in majority of Kenya’s informal settlements is predominantly controlled by Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s) and cartels. This phenomenon is prompted by government’s reluctance to provide services in informal settlements owing to their informal nature.

Land tenure is among the key elements that define slum settlements. The lack of tenure security limits both private and public investments in settlements translating to slum conditions. The form of land tenure also has implications on which settlements get upgraded whether by government, communities or other partners.

Emali town is a small town that lies along the Northern Corridor, in both Makueni and Kajiado Counties. A larger commercial part of the town lies in Makueni County while the section in Kajiado County is predominantly for residential use. The Mombasa - Kampala Railway and now the Standard Gauge Railway act as town’s border of Kajiado and Makueni County.

The Country is currently engaged in deliberations for undertaking a huge construction project that will have far-reaching impact on many aspects of the social, spatial, economic, environmental, and political consequences both now and in future. As we read about cost issues as well as the operational and political repercussions of the same, and what this project has to do to serve the economy, Planners have to ask and confront some fundamental questions: